Alcohol and Other Drug Education

Learn more about alcohol, cannabis, nicotine, and other substances and connect to resources below. In addition, learn more about how prevent and respond to alcohol and other drug toxicity.

Alcohol

The effects of alcohol on one’s behavior and the body vary by the individual and amount consumed. Alcohol is a central nervous depressant that slows brain activity and causes impairment to memory, vision, speech, reaction time, judgment, self-control and gross motor skills. The effects of alcohol use can have both short-term and long-term implications, and excessive alcohol use can lead to a medical emergency, serious injury, and/or death. Long-term use can lead to dependence and the risk of developing an alcohol use disorder. The safest way to avoid not-so-good effects is to choose not to use alcohol at all. If you are making the choice to drink, consider utilizing risk reduction strategies.

  • Learn more about the science of alcohol, alcohol’s effects on the brain and body, and risk reduction strategies through the Alcohol Skills Training Program online course. 
  • Read more about the science of alcohol and its effects on the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism’s website. 
  • Request an alcohol education program for your group or organization. 

 

Cannabis

Cannabis (also known as marijuana) use is associated with an array of short-term and longer-term effects. Cannabis use has been found to affect mood, motivation, concentration, memory, and perception, and use of higher doses of THC (the psychoactive compound in cannabis) can increase the risk of paranoia, panic, and hallucinations. Physically, cannabis use impairs motor skills and coordination as well as raises blood pressure and heart rate, which can be a trigger for anxiety. Greater risk of not-so-good health outcomes are associated with frequent use, high quantity use, use of products containing a high potency of THC, as well as individual factors like initiating cannabis use at age 16 or earlier, history of mental health diagnoses, and genetic pre-disposition to schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders. The safest way to avoid not-so-good effects is to choose not to use cannabis at all. If you are making the choice to use cannabis, consider adopting lower-risk use strategies. 

  • Read more about the science of cannabis and its effects on the National Institute on Drug Abuse’s website. 

Nicotine and Tobacco

Nicotine is an addictive substance found in vaping devices and tobacco products. Continued nicotine use can lead to nicotine use disorder, where an individual may experience withdrawal symptoms when trying to cut back or quit including irritability, cravings, trouble sleeping, and difficulty paying attention. Long-term health effects have been linked to both nicotine and other chemical compounds found in tobacco and vaping products. Tobacco use can lead to lung and mouth cancer, chronic bronchitis, emphysema, and an increased risk of stroke or heart attack. Vaping and e-cigarette devices also present health risks including nicotine addiction. The short-term risks, long-term risks, and overall safety of e-cigarette products have not been thoroughly evaluated by the research community at this time, and there is not sufficient research to compare the health risks of vaping devices to cigarettes.

  • Receive personalized feedback on your nicotine use by requesting a confidential OPEN Check-In meeting. 
  • Read more about the effects of vaping and tobacco products from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. 

 

Other Drugs

All substances have risks associated with use. For those looking to learn more about other drugs, the National Institute on Drug Abuse maintains a list of other commonly used drugs and the most up-to-date research on effects and risks of substances.  

Preventing and Responding to Alcohol & Other Drug Toxicity

The use of alcohol and other drugs can lead to events like medical emergency and overdose. The safest option to avoid any potential risks of alcohol and other drug use is to choose not to drink or use drugs at all. If you are choosing to use alcohol or other drugs or are around those who do, it is important to understand warning signs of alcohol and other drug toxicity, how to get help, and toxicity risk reduction. 

Looking to learn about warning signs, response, and prevention for opioid-related overdoses or access Narcan and other harm reduction supplies? Navigate to our Opioid Overdose Response and Prevention page.

Warning signs of alcohol and other drug toxicity

Signs that someone needs medical attention due to alcohol or other drug toxicity include: 

  • Lack of awareness 
  • Inability to answer basic questions (ex. what year it is, what residence hall they live in, etc.) 
  • Stumbling or loss of bodily control 
  • Going in and out of consciousness 
  • Slow and shallow breathing 
  • Can’t stand or walk on their own 
  • Vomiting 
  • Passing out 

Note that a person does not need to be displaying all of these signs to be experiencing a medical emergency. The presence of any of these signs indicates that someone may need medical attention due to alcohol or other drug use

How to get help during a potential alcohol or other drug-related medical emergency

If you’re concerned about a person’s safety due to alcohol or drug consumption: 

  • Call for emergency medical help immediately: 
    • Boston (on-campus): call Northeastern University Police Department (NUPD) at 617.373.3333
    • Boston (off-campus): call 911, then alert NUPD at 617.373.3333  
    • Oakland: call 911, then notify Department of Public Safety at 510.430.5555  
    • Other U.S. Locations: call 911  
    • London: call 999, then notify NUPD’s Global Safety Office at 617.373.2121  
    • Global Locations: call local emergency services, then notify NUPD’s Global Safety Office at 617.373.2121 
  • Stay with the person until help arrives. 
  • Do not give them food, drink, water, or medicine (including aspirin or vitamins). 
  • Do not let the person sleep or lay on their back. Lay them on their side. View this video from the National Health Service on how to put someone in a recovery position. 

Remember Northeastern’s Medical Amnesty policy. If a student calls on behalf of another student, that student should remain with the student experiencing the emergency until medical assistance arrives. As long as the student complies with all directives, there will be no disciplinary action taken related to the violation of possession or consumption of alcohol or drugs. 

Risk reduction considerations if making the choice to use alcohol or other drugs

If you’re making the decision to use other drugs, consider using some of these strategies: 

  • Avoid using drugs by yourself 
  • Avoid mixing different drugs. For example, Benzodiazepines (“benzos”), alcohol, and opioids all slow your breathing. Mixing them can cause an overdose. 
  • If you haven’t used for a while, use less than you normally would and start slower. Tolerance goes down after not using for a while. 

If you’re making the decision to drink, consider using some of these strategies: 

  • Set goals for the night beforehand and be deliberate about it (i.e. 2 drink maximum for the night) 
  • Keep track of standard drinks 
  • Eat before and while drinking 
  • Alternate alcoholic drinks with non-alcoholic drinks 
  • Space drinks out throughout the night 
  • Avoid mixing alcohol with other drugs or medications (whether legal or illegal)